I’m Scott Ware. a magna cum laude graduate of Yale University who passed his doctoral exams in history. I was, for many years, a railroad engineer. I also inherited a lifelong interest in gardening from my grandmother, who, I am sorry to say, did not always resist the temptation to “take a cutting” from any interesting plant she found – owner permission or no.

Purchase of a home in the Historic Pullman District of Chicago that had been uninhabited for twenty years gave me my first opportunity to build a garden from scratch since there was absolutely nothing in the yard to work with. The results you can see for yourself. In 1997 the Chicago Tribune garden editor, Dennis Rodkin, got wind of what I had done and, unbeknownst to me at the time, took a tour of my garden. A front-page article in the Tribune Home Section followed in the summer of 1998. (Click Here)

My first reaction to the publication of this article was to hide, but in the end it gave me encouragement to give up a secure and lucrative job to do what I really love – making land and its owners happy with each other.

Since 1998 I have worked on properties of different sizes, but I find the most exciting challenge to be that which I faced myself – how to turn a relatively small urban yard into a garden that really brings pleasure to those who live there.

The photos you can see here reflect my own personal solution to outdoor pleasure. I have helped others with very different solutions – from very formal to cottage flower gardens, to yards that first and foremost had to be “kid and dog proof.”

My challenge and satisfaction comes from matching my clients’ dreams with their realities and giving them something to delight in when they come home.

I look forward to hearing from you and will be happy to send references upon request.